ALFA International’s Friday Feature on October 23, 2020, is John Tarpley, shareholder of ALFA International member firm, Lewis Thomason, in Nashville, Tennessee, and the recipient of this year’s ALFA International Nathan Fishbach Attorney of the Year award! Congratulations, John!
Tell us about some of the friendships you’ve made through your participation in the network. This is the easiest question of all. Again, ALFA International is a family and a very “relational” crowd. While I love all of my legion of friends, I have to say that I could not have two better friends than Joe Swift, formerly of the St. Louis firm, and Trevor Uffelman, general counsel with ATTIC and a member of ALFAI’s Client Advisory Board. I would have never met either without ALFA International, and I am grateful beyond measure for their friendships.
What is your motto when it comes to the way you approach your work? At the end of the day, except in matters of life and death, a personal relationship trumps everything.
Please tell us about a favorite family vacation spot or an incredible trip you went on recently. At my house, we love to travel and cannot wait to get through with this pandemic business. Laura and I, along with our kids, have traveled together for years. We love our trips to Colorado to ski. We have been all over Europe, and last year Laura and I did a long trip to the Baltics. St. Petersburg was eye-popping. Then, in my one escape this year, I went to Montana to visit Trevor and went fly fishing for the first time. (And don’t tell him that I told you this, but I caught more fish than he did.)
How would you describe ALFA International to someone who wasn’t familiar with the association? ALFA International is a great family of professionals. We provide world-class legal representation, but our members and our clients are family. What occupation would you choose to pursue if you could no longer be a lawyer? Wow, that’s hard. I really like being a lawyer and really cannot imagine doing anything else. See article here ALFA International Facebook Page.
